Pollution control devices such as catalytic converters for gasoline engines have been known for over 30 years. In the last few years, more stringent regulations for diesel vehicles have resulted in a rapid increase in the use of other pollution control devices including diesel oxidation catalysts (DOCs), diesel particulate filters (DPFs), and selective catalytic reduction devices (SCRs). Such pollution control devices typically comprise a metal housing or casing with a pollution control element securely mounted within the casing by a resilient and flexible mounting mat. Catalytic converters, including diesel oxidation converters, contain a catalyst, which is typically coated on a monolithic structure. The monolithic structures are typically ceramic, although metal monoliths are also known. The catalyst in a gasoline engine oxidizes carbon monoxide and hydrocarbons and reduces the oxides of nitrogen to control atmospheric pollution. A diesel oxidation catalyst oxidizes the soluble organic fraction of soot particles as well as any carbon monoxide present.
Diesel particulate filters or traps are typically wall-flow filters, which have honeycombed, monolithic structures that are typically made from porous crystalline ceramic materials. Alternate cells of the honeycombed structure are typically plugged such that exhaust gas enters in one cell and is forced through the porous wall to an adjacent cell where it can exit the structure. In this way, the small soot particles that are present in diesel exhaust are collected. From time to time, the temperature of the exhaust gas is increased above the incineration temperature of the soot particles so that they are burned. This process is called “regeneration.”
Selective catalytic reducers are similar in structure and in function (i.e., reduce NOx) to catalytic converters. A gaseous or liquid reductant (generally ammonia or urea) is added to the exhaust gas before reaching the selective catalytic reducer monolith. The mixed gases cause a reaction between the NOx emissions and the ammonia or urea. The reaction converters the NOx emissions into pure nitrogen and oxygen.
The monoliths, and in particular the ceramic pollution control monoliths, used in pollution control devices are fragile, and susceptible to vibration or shock damage and breakage. They have a coefficient of thermal expansion generally an order of magnitude less than the metal housing that contains them. This means that as the pollution control device is heated the gap between the inside periphery wall of the housing and the outer wall of the monolith increases. Even though the metallic housing undergoes a smaller temperature change due to the insulating effect of the mat, the higher coefficient of thermal expansion of the metallic housing causes the housing to expand to a larger peripheral size faster than the expansion of the ceramic monolith. Such thermal cycling can occur many times each day during the life and use of the pollution control device.
To avoid damage to the ceramic monoliths from road shock and vibration, to compensate for the thermal expansion difference, and to prevent exhaust gases from passing between the monolith and metal housing (thereby bypassing the catalyst), mounting mats are disposed between the ceramic monolith and metal housing. These mats exert sufficient pressure to hold the monolith in place over the desired temperature range but not so much pressure as to damage the ceramic monolith. Known pollution control mounting mats include intumescent and non-intumescent sheet materials comprised of inorganic (e.g., ceramic) fibers, and organic and/or inorganic binders. The mat is wrapped around the monolith and generally has a tongue and groove configuration in order to seal against gas bypass despite the large outside circumference tolerance of the monolith. The process of placing or inserting the ceramic monolith and mounting material within the metal housing is refereed to as canning and includes such processes as wrapping an intumescent sheet or ceramic mat around the monolith and inserting the wrapped monolith into the housing.
In relatively low temperature applications (e.g., diesel particulate filters), typical organic component content (9% by weight or more) can lead to reduced mat mount performance due to changes in the binder that occur during use are typically detrimental to physical properties of the mat (e.g., due to stiffening or reduction in resiliency). Reductions in the total organic component content typically results in increased performance for the mounting mat, but can be detrimental to the internal strength of the mat, leading to mat shearing during the canning process.